PPAG POLITICS

Monday, 19 September, 2011

CANDIDATES SPEND
A NIGHT IN THE WOODS

Three candidates in the provincial election taking place October 6, 2011, slept out in the rain and cold last night (Monday and Tuesday, 19-20 September, 2011) to get some idea of what it is like to be homeless.
The three are Michelle Bilek, New Democratic Party candidate in Mississauga-Erindale, Patti Chmelyk of the Green Party and Dalbir Kathuria, New Democrat, both running in Brampton West.
The verdict from the three: “We have some idea of being without shelter. But it was just for one night.”
The three took up a challenge from Peel Poverty Action Group (PPAG), to all candidates in the nine ridings in the Region of Peel, to be homeless for one night. PPAG members include people who are struggling, plus organizations and social service workers who try to help them. PPAG makes presentations to all levels of government, and affordable housing has been a continuing subject.
About 1,000 people a month use homeless shelters in Peel. More than 15,500 families are on the waiting list for homes they can afford — and they may wait 20 years.
“We talked a lot of politics during the night,” Chmelyk reported. “People without shelter have many problems – they don’t eat properly, often they are socially isolated, and that is just the beginning. Shelter is key.”
Bilek, who has university degrees in psychology, sociology, and women’s studies, recalled a period when she lived in her car. “You live from moment to moment – where will I wash, where will I eat – long term planning to get out of poverty just can’t take place,” she said.
Kathuria, his turban soaked from a night in the rain, noted: “Many people spend a week, months, a lifetime, living in the woods, in the rain or snow, surviving as we did for one night. This should not be happening in Canada.”
The three slept in a wooded area in a Brampton park, identified as a squat by Daniel Cullen, who was without a home for 25 years, but is now adequately housed.
Bilek, Chmelyk and Kathuria are back on the hustings today, canvassing, knocking on doors, seeking votes that will put them into Queen’s Park, to address the problems of homelessness through government.